Effing Mice

working at a VW dealer, Ive seen my fair share of crispy rodents. Something about German vehicles and their efficiency at killing mice...

@Gus Gorilla
OP I'll dig into prodemand and see if I can find some torque specs for you

edit: I got locked out on my home computer...I'll have to wait til the morning to look up specs if you still don't have them

 

They must like the gallium like the raptors on the show terra nova. lol

 

I get my parts tomorrow but I'm out of town for a wedding until Mon. So a mon afternoon finish is in order.
And thank you.

 

Not just German Vehicles, Environmental Whackjobs made wire manufactures use Soy in the wire covering thus making it a tasty treat for rodents.

 

Yep. I leave a chunk of poison under my hood too. I've seen the carnage mice can do electrical wiring and it's not pretty.

 

Yep that's it. Heard the same from a toyota field guy.

 

Wouldn't mouse poison potentially attract mice to your vehicle?

 

I was just going to ask that.

I'm dealing with a garage mouse infestation since my water heater is in the garage, making it a nice warm bunk area. I went the mothball route and they just shit on the mothballs. There's been lots of stories about the "jacketing" on the wiring having a peanut oil or some such derivative that attracts them. I'm going to try the dryer sheets and make sure they don't use that as a sheet...

Edit: I'll add in my squirrel episode when we lived in WV. We were in a rural neighborhood and every time I popped the hood there was a small puddle on the fuse box right behind the battery. I knew right away it was some rodent staying warm for the night. Sure enough I go to pop the hood one morning (I have the EZ-Lift struts so it's just release and away it goes) and just as I hit the release I saw/heard something and the friggin squirrel ran up my arm, damn near knocked my hat off, launched off my shoulder and into the woods. He shit, and I shit! When I finally calmed down I started laughing like a mental patient. Never had that problem again though.

 

Sucks, happened on wives rx350, what a pita, luckily it was only a ignition coil wire which i was able to get to relatively easy, soldered it and put the cover back on. Checked 2 days later, the nest was back along with droppings and rat piss.
I sprayed surrounding area with maf cleaner and had my wife drive without engine cover for the next month, so far all good.
You've got me worried though, I have chickens (rats like to roam for food)and have green belt behind my house witch is like sanctuary for rodents, now that it's getting cold I have to keep an eye for surprises.
Good luck man, let us know what you end up doing to keep rodents away

And just to give some of you nightmares this is what I deal with on daily bases


Shot it with a BB gun while it was "coming at me bro"

 

Had the same issue but twice in 6 months. Insurance covered it but I was on the hook for $500 each time. Now I keep my hood open with a light in the engine bay and no engine cover. It's worked thus far, fingers crossed.

Comprehensive insurance covered it.

I found nests in my frame and in my cab air intake. Check those places.

 

Don't park a vehicle for long periods of time. You never know what will move in.
See attached, and guess how many walnuts were stored there. (Hint: its triple digits)


Toyota wire harness jigs are coated in a peanut oil for easier release. Little rat bustards smell it and chew on the harnesses.
Injectors, coils and evap hoses are very common.
I love the evap hoses molded into the fuel tank. One small section of corrugated hose could be damaged, yet toyota made it non-serviceable so the whole fuel tank needs to be replaced when the rodent snacks on it.






240+ walnuts. Seriously.

 

Hate to break it to you but those walnuts are Tennis Balls.

 

How do you put the mouse poison?

 

Most mouse poison ATTRACTS rodents to come eat it. The local Orkin Pest Control people here drive white 2016 Tacomas so maybe one will chime in but then again who goes on a forum for their work vehicle. I've heard they hate Pine-Sol so maybe little saucers of the stuff around the truck?

 

I've had several run-ins with mice in my Honda Pilot. I had two die inside the air conditioning system (on separate occasions), and I had to open everything up to get them out. Oh, the smell. I also had one build a nest inside the drivers seat, chewing up the wiring for the heated seat in the process. Now I keep a packet of

$19 Fresh Cab Rodent Repellent - Botanical Pest Control for Indoor Use - Safe for Kids & Pets When Used As Directed - Made with Plant Fibers, Balsam Fir Essential Oil & Fragrance - 4-Pack

Fresh-Cab in there, and it does the trick for me. I also keep a packet in my riding mower and my grill over the winter.

 

i wish. i removed every single one myself. I kept expecting to find the squirrel buried in the corner


i had a customer with a 4Runner that was used as a farm truck. owner kept bird feed and dog food in it.
somehow rats and mice got in. they decided to live in there since there was roughly 250 pounds of food right in the back seat.
they got all up through the dashboard, up in the headliner, behind the inner plastic panels, even chewed into the seats and made nests in there.
the final insurance bill was about $13K in damage... a few new wire harnesses, seatbelts, seats, new carpets, headliner, and removal and cleaning of all panels, trim, and the floor. the cleaning company said they have never seen such an infestation in a vehicle before, only ever in houses.
yes, rats.

think twice before ordering that extra bigass fries at McDonalds and having half of them drop into the land of the lost between the seats and console..you never know what may be trying to clean up after you.

 

Me. I'm the guy that does that.

In my younger days I worked for a lube shop. Car pulls in, I'm underneath, guy up top opens the hood. At least 6 big mice fell on top of my head. I shit myself.

 

They won't notice the chewed up wiring or anything

 

I had thought about the poison attracting them. I'm just going to leave it in the truck a few days until I'm don't with the repair. After that I'll put it around the garage. Figured he'd be back soon looking for his nest and I'd feed him a treat. I haven't seen a single mouse around here. Was pretty surprised by this guy.